The Ultimate Hunter
by ic3cold
Summary: A group of scientists reaches a major breakthrough in their research. They are finally able to weaponize the Xenomorph species. Test subject 121 is their golden egg, but will he remain that way?
1. Subject 121

I was born in a laboratory. My earliest memory begins there, surrounded by doctors. The room was too dark to see anything, at least with my eyes. It was cold as well not that I was bothered by it in the slightest.

"It's waking up!"

"Let's see if this one is successful."

A bright light suddenly shone down upon me as I sat up.

"Subject 121, stand up and move around. We've got to make sure your body won't deteriorate on us. And if so, the sooner the better."

What was he saying? My body feels just fine. I examine my hands and feet not quite sure what I should be expecting. If anything I felt great.

"It seems to be able to move just fine. Should we have it do the obstacle course now?"

"Yes, let's just get this over with. The sooner it's dead the sooner we can move on."

That time the voice wasn't sent through the speaker. I can hear them through the glass. Obstacle course? What the hell's happening? Suddenly a passageway opened before me. There were trees, grass, animals, and even sunlight. For a second, in the midst of my ignorance I was relieved by the thought of freedom.

"Enter the area before you Subject 121. Before you do, notice that there is a collar located around your neck. That collar will eject spikes that will decapitate you upon our command. We are releasing you into an area of this planet that we have quarantined. Do not attempt to escape. We will be examining your abilities throughout this course. If we are not satisfied with your progress, you will be terminated. Follow your instincts and you will survive. We will be watching your every move."

Yeah, you're telling me. Before I could even process what was happening, a chill ran down my spine as the door closed behind me. It wasn't fear, it was adrenaline. Something was coming for me. No, something was here. It moved quickly and remained camouflaged at that. But I could see it. I could feel it. But I didn't know how to fight it. So I did what any natural prey does, I ran.

I jumped into a tree and made my flight. As I jumped branch to branch it kept up moderately well at a distance no more than 10 feet behind me. I didn't have time to look back and examine my predator. All I knew is I didn't want to be caught. To my dismay it appeared I had reached the end of this succession of trees. I jumped to the ground and the beast had finally caught up with me. It was a creature about 15 feet tall. It was a grayish color, a trait probably obtained through evolution to allow it to hunt better. Its hands were humanoid, like mine except a size befitting a fifteen-foot beast. The strangest trait it possessed, however, was on its face. The beast had only one eye.

It stared at me for a second, drooling from the mouth. It looked around and picked up a tree that appeared to have fallen down at some point. I'm not sure why it felt the need to use such a large weapon given the difference of almost 10 feet in our size, but I wasn't the predator. Not yet anyway.

At this point putting together that things were about to get violent, I realized something. I ran earlier not because I was afraid, but because I didn't know what to do. Well, that's not entirely true. I knew what I wanted to do, but not how to do it. Every nerve ending on my body, every synapse in my brain, every hair on my head screamed for me to kill this one-eyed freak.

Almost as if in reaction to my realization, the creature swung at me. And it missed. Swinging something as big as a tree only gives you about one way to attack: a straight line. If I saw where the attack was coming from, I could predict the arc and avoid it. From the left it swung, I jumped over. Not even five seconds after my landing it swung again, this time from this right side. I didn't have time to think about thinking. Tired of defense, my body moved instinctively. Before the creature could begin its swing, I jumped up and onto its right arm. I ran up its upper arm, jumped, and struck it as hard as I could in the jaw. To my surprise, it flew into the nearby cliff. I was stronger than I thought, but not strong enough it seemed. The creature got back up to my complete surprise. Still thinking about the apparent pointlessness of my assault, it struck me. Hard.

I collided with a tree. This one still rooted firmly in the ground. I guess that makes two trees. The big guy hit hard. Blood ran down my face, in front of my left eye. What did they expect me to do, beat it to death unarmed? Anger flooded my mind. I wanted to kill it. I needed to kill it. It made a fool of me. Nothing else mattered to me. Before I could attack again, I felt something on my back. More accurately, it was leaving my back. The blob of whatever the hell it was formed itself into what looked like a small animal. It looked to be about three feet in length, including its tail.

I felt a connection to it. Almost as if it was waiting for me to attack. Listening to myself think for the past ten minutes had gotten me nowhere, so I decided to follow my instincts. The murderous ones. The creature crawled on my back and coiled its tail loosely around my neck. I ran towards the creature and baited the swing. This time, it came from above. I evaded to the side and continued to move in until I was almost directly underneath its head. Using every muscle in my legs, I jumped up and delivered a rather vicious uppercut to the beast. In that same moment the small creature that I spawned swung around my neck to the front of my body, coiled up its tail and used it as a spring to propel itself toward the beast. The beast fell over as my little friend wrapped its arms around the beast's head. Its gigantic hands unable to peel away at what I had spawned. In fact, before it got the chance to try twice, its arms went limp and it stopped moving. I guess that means I won?


	2. The Circle of Life

It was quiet. The beast laid there on the floor, subdued and unconscious. I wasn't sure of anything. Suddenly the voice from earlier began speaking.

"That creature is called a Facehugger. It attaches itself to a creature of suitable size and implants the host with an embryo. Respond if you understand."

"What the hell is going on? Who are you people?" I asked not sure where to begin.

"Actually Don, they don't insert an embryo. First, they subdue their host by secreting just the right amount of dimethyl sulfoxide, in addition to wrapping their tail around the target's throat if possible. The creature deposits a proboscis down the throat of the intended host. In addition to supplying the host with air, the tube also deposits a tumor in the host's chest cavity. The tumor consists of specifically tailored cancers that bring about a restructuring of the host's cells."

"What does that mean?" I asked.

"Basically, the Facehugger inserts a malignant growth that causes the host's body to assemble what we refer to as a "Chestburster" at a cellular level from the host's own biological material. The process takes a few hours but once the Facehugger attaches itself it's pretty much impossible to remove, safely at least."

"Normally an egg is needed to create a Facehugger. However an egg, or an Ovomorph, is laid by a Xenomorph Queen. You were created as the bridge in the gap of the Xenomorph life cycle. Your ability to create Facehuggers from your own genetic material will be invaluable once you've infiltrated enemy lines."

"Enough with the science lesson! You think it didn't want to do that from the start? It doesn't need an explanation. Subject 121, wait there for the implantation process to be completed."

I had no clue what was happening, but things were starting to make a bit more sense. That creature, the Facehugger, it responded to my thoughts. And I felt that what it was doing at the moment, the implantation process, was vastly important. What did they mean I was the gap in the life cycle? What was a Xenomorph? But wait, the creature was still alive.

"What is this creature?" I asked. "What is it called?"

"It's a cyclops. They're distinguished by their single large eye."

"You said the cyclops is only being sedated right? That means eventually it will wake up?"

"That is correct."

Lovely.

* * *

With nothing else to do, I sat beside the creature and I waited for whatever was next. Hours passed by as I was lost deep in thought. I couldn't stay under their control. I had to escape. Suddenly, something changed. The smell of the beast was different. I couldn't tell what it was, but the creature seemed friendlier. Maybe that isn't the best way to describe it. But at that moment, the Facehugger's scent changed too. It seemed as though it was getting weaker. I wasn't sure why I could detect so much by smell. Maybe I should ask the scientists. The Facehugger crawled off of the cyclops' face. It scuttled into some nearby bushes, curled into a ball, and died. I guess its only purpose was to implant a host.

"Why did its scent change? The cyclops I mean."

"What changed wasn't the scent. Most likely it's the pheromones that the creature is emitting that changed. Can you describe the change?"

"It's the same as before, except it smells similar to me now as well. And every second that scent grows stronger."

At last, the moment I'd been dreading had arrived. The beast started to stir. By now the scent of whatever was inside the cyclops was strong. It called out to me. I could feel what it felt. It was ready to come out. It was ready to be born. Before I could make sense of these new happenings, I decided it would be best to hide. The Chestburster would soon be out although I hadn't the faintest idea how.

I climbed the highest nearby tree I could find, jumping quickly up its long trunk. At the top, I noticed that this was nowhere near the tallest tree in this area. The scientists mentioned that I was currently in a quarantined area of this planet. They had also mentioned not to try to escape. When the cyclops tried to ambush me earlier I had run at least 2 miles from the lab exit. It was probably safe to assume that the lab exit was in the center of this area, that they quarantined an area surrounding their lab. Just how big was this test area?

The cyclops wasn't interested in my confusion about my whereabouts, it had woken up. What should I do? My body told me it wasn't as much of a threat anymore but that it was just as dangerous. I decided I should follow it and wait for this Chestburster to appear. To my confusion, the creature didn't move. I waited as seconds turned into minutes. Ten minutes later and it was still in the same spot. I climbed down the tree trying to move quickly without drawing its attention. Something was wrong. Throwing caution to the wind, I jumped down from my current position on the tree and landed about ten feet from the cyclops. It was dead. What did I miss? The creature was definitely still alive after our battle, it even stood back up. Was this a side effect of the Facehugger? But even so, where was the Chestburster?

"Subject 121, is it dead?"

I turned around facing the speaker that the question had come from. "Yes."

"The Chestburster will be born soon."

"And how exactly will it be born? The cyclops is dead."

"Just what do you think killed it?"

I turned my head smelling something new. I hadn't noticed it before but the scent that was similar to mine had grown quite strong. In fact, the cyclops was practically masked by it. I inched closer and closer to my fallen adversary unsure of what to expect. I could feel it inside of the cyclops. I called out to it. At that moment, it burst from within the cyclops chest. Startled I jumped back and fell. I studied the creature. It was slender like a worm, basked in the cyclops' blood. I stood on my feet and walked closer to it as it had now slithered onto the ground. It had a tiny set of arms, legs, and even a tail.

"Subject 121 you are to protect this specimen until it reaches maturity. This is the most vulnerable stage of the Xenomorph life cycle."

I could understand why. It was small but despite the sharpness of its teeth, I figured it lacked the strength to lock down a target and use them. Responding to my thoughts, the creature moved closer to my leg.

"After it reaches maturity, your real test will begin."

What kind of 'obstacle course' was this?


	3. Control

"Hunt with it. It's basic biology. It needs to eat in order to grow."

"You want me to go around the forest killing anything that moves?"

"Yes. However, the specimen can hunt on its own. What we really want to see is if you can control it. Tell it where to move and when to attack. It should feel like an extension of yourself."

He was right. I found myself able to command the creature with little more than a thought. But what was the point? To make a weapon out of it? I could hardly see how. Then again according to them, it wasn't mature yet. I walked through the forest with the creature who oddly enough seemed to be growing larger as the minutes passed by. I wasn't sure how I felt about killing random things I found. However, I could not deny that part of me was excited at the thought of another battle.

"Subject 121, can you make the creature act on its own? Let it move of its own accord."

I don't know how they thought this worked, hell I didn't even know how this worked. They said it needed to grow so I sent the creature a simple enough message. _Food._ It jumped from my shoulder onto the ground and ran towards the east.

"Follow it from the trees!"

I was growing tired of having them bark orders at me. I climbed a nearby tree and picked up the Chestburster's trail. As I followed, making sure I did not get too high, low, or far I decided that it needed a name. _Castrealm._ I wasn't sure where the name came from, but to me, it felt appropriate. As I remained on Castrealm's trail, I noticed something fascinating. It really was like an extension of myself. As I followed closely behind, now on the ground, I noticed we almost shared a vision. From the things it saw as it made its way through the forest to the scents it detected, I experienced it all directly in my mind. It seemed to be some sort of psychic link. Depending on how close I was to him the signal grew stronger so to speak. Suddenly, Castrealm stopped moving. He had found something. I was about 20 feet behind and could not move as silently as him so I slowed my pace and took to the trees. I could see it all. The creature resembled a deer. It had no claws and I didn't feel a shred of malice emanating from it. Castrealm was calm. He knew I was watching. He circled around in an attempt to attack from outside of its field of vision. He was a natural predator. Faintly, I could hear a voice in the distance.

"Nod your head if you can hear me Subject 121"

I nodded.

"We're using a speaker about half a mile away so that only you can hear us. We want **you** to kill the animal. After that, the Chestburster can eat it."

I had no issue with this animal but now didn't seem like the right moment to start disobeying them. Slowly. I climbed down the tree. It didn't hear me. There was so much grass everywhere. What if it heard me as I made my approach? I moved slowly. As it continued eating the greenery it remained blissfully ignorant of my existence. I moved closer counting each step as a small victory. Left foot. Right foot. Left foot. Right foot. Left foot. Right foot. Left foot. Right foot. Left foot. Right foot. Left foot. Right foot. I could only take six very careful steps before the animal's scent changed. This new scent was far more pleasurable than its natural odor. It was _fear._

The creature took off, not even bothering to look at what made the sound that it heard. I chased after it. It was fast, I was faster. It took five seconds. One for me to savor its fear. Two for me to start running. Three for me to pounce. Four for me to land. Five for me to slit its throat. My nails had grown about an inch longer. They became _claws_. It was exhilarating, the ecstasy I felt after ending its life. I felt accomplished, then I felt ashamed. I was ashamed of feeling this way, feeling like an animal. Castrealm came and began eating the dead animal, paying no mind of course to my existential crisis. I looked at my hands which were now soaked in the animal's blood. I wanted to do it again. I wanted to kill again.

I sat down and waited for Castrealm to finish consuming the animal. He ate everything, bones included. I wondered if I should be eating too? I didn't feel hungry, and yet I'd done a lot more than him. Maybe I didn't need to eat.

"Good kill Subject 121. Now you remain here and allow it to roam free."

Sighing, I sat down by a nearby tree. I looked over at Castrealm, noticing cracks along his skin. He looked like he was about to molt.

 _Go._

He left. After a meal like that, I doubted it would be long before he reached maturity. I felt like their puppet. They were using me to control these creatures. Was it really worth all this? Were these Xenomorphs that powerful of an asset? Not feeling fatigued but not knowing what to do next, I closed my eyes and found myself falling asleep.

* * *

Hours passed by, it was nighttime now. I was alone. Where was Castrealm? Had he reached maturity? He was too far for me to feel his presence. His scent had faded as well, most likely due to the amount of time that had passed.

"Subject 121, do you know where the Alien is?"

The Alien? That was new. "No, I don't"

"You should be able to feel its presence, to see what it sees. The Xenomorphs function similarly to ants in terms of their social life. A group of Xenomorphs that operate together or under one queen is referred to as a hive. Usually, a queen is required for a hive to be formed. You, however, are the next best thing. At least we're hoping that you are. Our ultimate goal is to see if you can successfully control the line of Xenomorphs that are spawned from you. If you can control this one, then you will be ready for your first assignment. You should be connected to any Xenomorph that descends from you via a hive mind kind of connection. Do you understand?"

I understood him, mostly. But Castrealm was simply too far away for me to sense him. Wait, that scent. Castrealm? I stood up trying to focus. This scent was definitely his, but where was he?

 _Come._

A loud blood chilling hiss came from the distance. His scent was different. Hostile? It was too dark to see past the area around me. And then he came. At seven feet tall he surpassed me in height. He opened his mouth and a smaller secondary head emerged hissing at me as well. We were allies before. Why is he reacting this way now?

"Regain control Subject 121. Xenomorphs are a race of predators. They do little more than kill and reproduce. You aren't a queen so you must assert yourself in a different manner."

My frustration was growing by the second. The connection I felt to him earlier was gone. Once again, I was alone. He turned on me in a matter of hours. The scientists would turn on me too eventually. In fact, they were never on my side. If I die, to them I'll be remembered as a failure. Nothing more nothing less. Lost in my thoughts as I was frequently finding myself, he caught me off guard. Castrealm charged and managed to cut me with claws that could probably tear through steel with ease. I managed to jump back in the nick of time avoiding any fatal injuries, but I was furious. He tried to kill me, the only thing in existence that was looking out for him. My anger grew until I snapped. Something changed inside of me from the very core of my being. My body began changing. My surroundings became clearer as I felt my body increase in size. I was different. I was like him now.


	4. Dominance

I didn't want to fight him. I didn't know what had happened to me. I had grown about two feet in height, sprouting a tail that matched my new eight-foot figure. And I could see so much clearer than before. As I looked around, I could see every living creature around me. Their size didn't matter. It had to be their heat signatures, a thermal vision of some sorts. I had access to it in this form. All the grass and trees that I recalled seeing before dulled in comparison to the animals around us. But something was odd. If I was picking up heat signatures, then Castrealm wasn't emitting any heat. The way I saw him was different. His smell, the pheromones he emitted, told me where he was. In fact, I don't think I was actually 'seeing' much with my eyes. Sure, I could see Castrealm, but only because he was standing in front of me. No, the rest of this sensory information was coming from the smells in the air. The shadow of the night didn't matter, I could see everything. I hissed at Castrealm, listening to what my body told me to do.

 _Submit._

He hissed back, brandishing his inner jaw at me. It opened its mouth and gave a cry of its own. Imagine seeing that for the first time. He tackled me and we began to strike each other. I was stronger now, much stronger. I picked him up and slammed him into the ground by his tail.

 _Submit!_

He didn't give up. Assert my dominance? I mounted him and began punching the smooth helmet like structure that was now his head. Strike. Strike. Strike. Wrapping his tail around my neck, he threw me off of him. Rolling along the ground, I composed myself on all fours. I opened my mouth and let out a loud hiss, my inner jaw chomping away at the air. I needed to fight smarter. I was in control here. I ran at him on all fours. About five feet before him, I rotated counterclockwise, using the momentum of that movement to strike him hard with my tail. Before he could collide with anything, I started moving again, chasing his body mid-flight. As he collided with a nearby tree I was already upon him. Still running, my head collided with his chest. He let out a scream. I placed one hand on his head holding him in place as I struck him repeatedly. I would kill him if he wouldn't submit. I hit him over and over and over again. I pierced his shoulder with my claws as he cried out in pain. I smacked him with the broad side of my tail. Finally, I brought the tip of it to his head, pointing the blade right at him.

 _SUBMIT._

His scent changed almost instantly. His body went limp, he no longer resisted me. I could feel him once again. My surroundings growing even clearer as his senses were added to my own. He was part of my hive again. I got off of him and hissed, asserting myself still, almost as if I was daring for someone or something else to challenge me.

"Subject 121 revert back to your natural form."

Them again. I was sick of them. I wanted to kill them all. My natural form? This **is** my natural form. Could I do it? I had Castrealm by my side again. No, these weren't my thoughts. These weren't rational thoughts. I focused hard on my shape before the battle with Castrealm. Suddenly, I felt myself morphing. I was back to 'normal'. I felt drained. The transformation took a lot out of me. But my head was clear now. I couldn't attack them now. I didn't know where I was, how many of them there were, or even what to do next.

"Now come back to the facility and ensure that your dog is under control."

We began the walk back to my point of entry into this forest. Castrealm was relaxed. I was keeping him that way. With Castrealm with me, I noticed things that I hadn't take note of before. With everything that was happening, I guess I didn't have the time to do so. This planet had to be pretty small. As I looked up on our walk back I could see the depths of space. Where was I? When I got back to the lab, things would be different. I wanted answers, I deserved them. After reaching the halfway point I decided to test just how much control I had over Castrealm. I gave him commands on how to move and act.

 _Hide._

He moved to the bushes, moving along with me but silently and out of sight. Any normal person wouldn't have been able to detect him. We were approaching a creature similar to the one I had killed before. He remained hidden and crept up on the animal. I almost felt bad for the animal seeing how close Castrealm could get without being detected. Almost. In the dark of night, he might as well have been invisible. Every movement was silent.

 _Kill._

And it was over. Castrealm had pounced. The animal was dead. I could sense from Castrealm the same feeling of ecstasy that I had experienced earlier. But he didn't seem as thrilled. I think what we enjoyed most was the thrill of the hunt. The fear that we could smell from our victims was what really produced that feeling of euphoria upon ending their life. I walked over to the lifeless corpse, knelt down and examined it. I felt odd as if something was missing. Paying no further attention to matters of the dead, I continued on my way while attempting to learn just how much I could influence Castrealm's actions. Finally, we arrived at the dreaded place. The double doors opened up, inviting me to throw away the little bit of freedom that I had been given. Nobody was inside, nobody I could detect at least.

"Come inside, Subject 121."

I entered the doors with Castrealm. I noticed that there were two cube-like structures in the room.

"Both of you enter that cell. It is made of a special material that neutralizes the Xenomorph's acidic blood."

Acidic blood? That was new. Wonder what other secrets they were hiding.

"Their blood is acidic? That might have been something to mention."

"You don't need to worry about it. It should have no effect on you either. You're essentially one of them. In fact, your blood should be acidic as well, though we didn't get the opportunity to test its pH levels."

Interesting. Even our blood was a weapon. I really wonder what else we were capable of. Wait a minute. When did I start thinking collectively?

"What else haven't you told me? I'm sick of jumping through your hoops. I won't cooperate any further until I get some answers."

"Have you forgotten that your life is in our hands Subject 121? That we could kill you in an instant? You are nothing more than a press of a button. That is how much value your existence possesses."

He was bluffing. He had to be. I passed their tests. I proved I could do what they wanted me to do. They wouldn't just kill me. I entered the cage, not willing to bet my life on a chance. There would be a chance to escape, but this wasn't it. The door shut behind us as we found ourselves locked in. Gears began to grind as our cage started to move. We were raised up to the main level of the laboratory. I finally got to see the faces of my captors.


	5. Debriefing

There were about twenty of them in the room. Some of them were continuing about their assignments, some of them stared in awe of us. They couldn't believe I wasn't being torn to pieces. Castrealm knew better than that, at least now he did. Ignoring the scientists, I examined the area before me. It was connected to the rest of the lab so I could smell the people in the surrounding rooms as well. I counted about thirty in total, but I couldn't detect everyone in the complex. There were no weapons in the room before me, but this still wasn't the time to attack. They looked so weak and fragile. It would take such little force to snap their necks. I noticed my thoughts had become increasingly violent ever since I'd first transformed.

I decided to try and untangle the web of confusion that I was caught in. "What do you want with us?" I asked, soon realizing the pointlessness of my inquiry.

They ignored me and continued about their business. One scientist approached my cell and tapped it as if I was some lowly animal incapable of higher thought. I wanted to tear his head off. I didn't react, though. Instead, I chose to continue to look around for some means of escape.

Still ignoring my earlier question a scientist came forward and said to me, "Subject 121, we are going to sedate you and the alien in order to separate you."

Just like that, gas was flushed into my cell. Castrealm began thrashing about, striking the cell with his tail, but to no avail. I too tried punching the walls of the cell but it was pointless. I held my breath for as long as I could, but eventually, I succumbed to the sedative.

* * *

I opened my eyes and met the gaze of a ceiling light shining down on me. I tried to get up but found that I was restricted. My hands and feet were bound to the table that I was laying on. As if that wasn't enough, there was some sort of helmet strapped to my head.

"Raise him up," said one scientist to another as I heard the faint click of a button being pressed.

The table shifted from a horizontal position to a vertical one. I was about eye level with the two scientists in the room.

"How do you feel the events of the obstacle course went Subject 121?" he asked with a clipboard in hand.

"Well I'm not dead," I looked him between the eyes, "so I'd say things went pretty well," I answered with no attempt to mask the sarcasm in my voice.

He seemed to pay my attitude no mind and instead addressed his colleague, "Vitals look good. How are the brainwaves?"

"Let's find out," he moved over to and sat in a chair. "Stimulate the other subject, the alien."

I watched as one of the scientists nodded his head and proceeded to press a button on his terminal. I winced as soon as he pressed it. Something was happening to Castrealm. He was in pain. They were torturing him to test our connection.

The scientist that was now seated said to his partner, "Regions of Subject 121's brain show signs of activity when we send an electrical charge through the alien. The activity is very minimal relative to the size of the region of the brain that is being stimulated."

"Perhaps that's due to him only being connected to one alien? You know Subject 121, you really are an amazing scientific specimen."

I remained silent.

"Alright, if you're done flirting let's prep it for transport. It's time for the mission briefing."

"Yeah yeah, whatever."

After making sure that my restraints were as tight as they could possibly be, they wheeled me through an automatic door and continued to push me down a hallway. I'd become good at remaining silent. Since I couldn't move, I figured the best thing for me to do was to ignore these cretins and study my surroundings in the event that an opportunity to escape presented itself. However, life didn't seem to have that in store for me. We entered an elevator at the end of the hall and they pressed the button for the fifth floor from the top.

The doors opened and a narrow corridor lay before me. There was a red door along with two guards standing on each side of it. They stepped aside as dumb and dumber wheeled me into the room. It was amazing. The room was about 30 feet in diameter. For every person, there had to be at least five separate machines, lights flickering on every one of them. In the center of the room stood a woman.

"Bring him here," she said, directing the men who had brought me into the room. The woman had long black hair and spoke with confidence. She was dressed in a suit jacket and had on high heels about four to five inches in length. She stood tall and maintained a near-perfect posture.

She spoke again, "Release his restraints."

With a look on his face that I found quite hilarious, one of the scientists responded, "Release him? Ma'am, I don't think-"

"You don't get paid to think," she said coldly with a hint of superiority. "Follow your orders."

Without another moment of hesitation, the two men loosened my restraints. Slowly, I stepped off of the hand cart to which I had been attached, looking over my shoulder at the two men who had brought me up here. Quickly, they returned to the corridor from which we entered. I raised my arms into the air as I stretched out my body. It's incredible what being restrained for even a short amount of time can do to your body. I couldn't think of a plausible reason for her to release me, but then I understood. At that moment I was thankful that I had not given in to my primal urges.

She spoke with an incredibly calm tone in her voice, "That's better, isn't it?" This woman was...weird. Despite how close in proximity I was to her, she wasn't afraid. It's one thing to mask your fear, to cover it up and hide it inside of you, but she wasn't covering anything. She wasn't afraid of me. "There's no need for you to be locked up like an animal. After all, I'd hate for you to harbor any resentment towards us that would make your first mission anymore difficult than it has to be."

She'd caught my attention. She might just catch my anger as well. "And what mission would that be?"

"Look at this," She waved her hand toward the large holographic display in the front of the room.

I decided to play her game. "What am I looking at?" I asked genuinely curious.

"Change the screen to satellite view," she spoke and they willed it into reality. The screen changed and zoomed out showing what appeared to me to be a planet. "That right there is planet Dohi. It also happens to be where we will be sending you for your first mission. It is planet number six of sector eighty-eight as designated by the Universal Alliance."

She had to be joking. I watched as the globe opened up from the inside and changed into a map of the planet. She pressed a button on the display in front of her, pinched her fingers on an area of the map, and the diagram zoomed in on that area.

"Specifically, you'll be going here." She touched a landmass and the map adjusted to include the area in its entirety. "This is the country of Plifal. It's rather small relative to some of the other countries on Dohi, but I think you'll find that it is still quite large."

Suddenly, I couldn't take it anymore. Succinct and to the point I said, "Stop talking."

She turned her head towards me. "Excuse me?"

I quickly stepped forward and grabbed her by the lapels of her jacket. "Ever since I woke up in the lab it's been one order after another and I'm sick of it!" I hadn't noticed how loud I had become or even that I had my hands on her. "I don't know who any of you are or why the hell I'm here and I'm not doing anything else until I get some answers!" I looked down at her right hand and noticed the remote in it. "You think that remote in your hand scares me? Kill me then," my eyes widened, "press the button. I. Don't. Care."

My frustration had gotten the better of me. In addition to the increase in my volume, I didn't realize how close I was standing to this woman or that I was actually touching her. More importantly, I had failed to notice when all of the guards in the room began aiming their guns at me. Some of them had even moved close enough to point the barrel a few inches away from my head.

I recognized the unadvantageous situation that I was in and slightly loosened my grip on her. "Stand down! He won't hurt me." Her confidence was **infuriating**. This was true power. I could have crushed her throat ten times by now. All of my strength meant nothing simply because she wasn't afraid.

The guards lowered their guns and I let go of her completely. "Alright, the show is over everyone," she yelled turning her head around the room, "get back to work!" She turned her attention towards me once again. "What is it that you'd like to know Subject 121?"

It finally seemed that I was getting somewhere. "Who are you?" I asked.

"My name is Sylvia. Sylvia Kelly Weyland."

"And what about everyone else? Who are they?"

She seemed confused. As if the very idea of me wanting to know the identities of her subordinates was unfathomable. "Who are they?" A look of clarity consumed her face. "Oh, my apologies. Now I understand what you're asking. Everyone here, myself included, we are all part of the black ops division of a certain organization."

"Alright," I was making sure to maintain my composure but she wasn't making it easy for me, "and that organization would be?"

"The Weyland-Yutani Corporation of course."


End file.
